Which way did he go George, which way did he go? How many of you remember that cartoon? I know you all are seeing that huge abominable snowman in your mind. Picking up George and holding him by the neck and saying in that funny little voice, which way did he go George, which way did he go?
That’s kind of how I feel. Thinking about my 30 year class reunion has brought that thought up with practically everyone’s pictures I see in the year book, except for those few like me who have stayed in Greenbrier County and our way didn’t go very far. Or did it? I have wondered many times if so and so actually did what they said they were going to do. While I find others actually did stuff I never thought they would do. And then there are some of us like me who never moved out of the neighborhood but yet I feel like I have been on a tremendous journey sometimes.
I haven’t kept up with any of my classmates except for occasionally running into them at Wal-Mart or facebook. Life got busy for us all. We raised families went to school, started careers, accomplished great things. And now here we are almost ½ decade old and we gather with friends we feel like we hardly know. For some or most we met in high school, hung out for 3 years and went our separate ways. Did we really know each other then? No I don’t think so. I remember seeing faces day in and day out, smiles that hid so much. Teenage years are the hardest EVER! We got by and got through with the help of those faces. Our parents didn’t understand or so we thought. Now here we are with teenagers of our own and they are doing the same thing. They think we don’t have a clue but has it really been that long? 30 years?! But I can remember walking the halls of Greenbrier West like it was yesterday. I can still hear the choir singing Billie Joel’s tune It’s Still Rock and Roll to me in my head. Humming along. When I go to a ballgame I can still feel the atmosphere as if I was 16. But there is something about those classmates we surround ourselves with. The ones that have the same home life and we know by just the look in their eyes. Maybe their grief is the same as yours and you just know by that same look. You can almost feel it. So yes, the bonds we formed 30 years ago were brief, 3 years for most, but they were bonds. And I am proud to say I was in a class of 140 or so that made it out alive and traveled to the other side, 30 years later.
It’s funny, I think, how we feel the need to reconnect at some level to see how we all turned out. It’s almost like we were turkeys cooking and now 30 years later someone sticks a fork in us and says, “OK, this one’s done?” By now we have all grown up, raised our families for the most part, many have started new families, jobs have come and went, spouses, come and gone, health on the decline, many of us have lost parents and spouses and now we find ourselves at a crossroads. That’s where I am. I am trying to figure out, which way do I go Lord, which way do I go?
Proverbs 16:9
In their hearts humans plan their course but the Lord establishes their steps
When you lose the one you have traveled through life with for 30 years, whether it is death or divorce, you instantly meet road blocks. I feel like I am at a 4 way stop sign and my engine has stalled- and given my history of car accidents this winter, I am not stretching the truth here! My kids are all almost grown; do I go back to school? I have a big empty house; do I sell it and go smaller? So many questions and unfortunately I don’t travel with the pack of kids that helped me make decisions when I was at Greenbrier West. I am alone. My decisions. My mistakes. I’ll have to live with it. But the good thing is in my last 30 years I have travelled a road that has been bumpy, treacherous at times; curvy and well at times it has come to a dead end. And I know that my class mates have traveled this same road. We have grown, matured and we have found that we can’t go this road alone. The one thing I have noticed as I have reconnected with many friends and former classmates is not the size of theirhouse or what kind of car they drive but it is their testimony and how they have overcome obstacles to just survive. I notice thatthey reached out to God. They have called upon Jesus to help them in their struggles and I see He has done it. He has made a way when there seemed to be no way. I know many have jumped hurdles and have overcome many things to get to where they are today. Many still have a long way to go.
I hope and pray as we get ready for a class reunion that it will be more than just reuniting and seeing familiar faces. I hope we get the chance to uplift someone and help them if they are at their crossroads of life. Similar to high school, there will be those that have already gone where we are headed. Change is exciting but also scary. It’s ok to ask someone to hold your hand even if it’s just for a little while. Jesus holds our heart and he places people in our path to hold our hand for part of our journey; our angels on earth. Our travels wouldn’t be near as meaningful without those relationships He gives us. Treat them gently and with kindness. Love when it seems like you can’t. Forgive when everything inside of you says no! Trust them when they give you no reason to. Why? That’s what Jesus would do! That’s what He expects of us…We can’t disappoint the one that created us! He doesn’t ask much of us…Love Jesus, love your neighbor. I think we can do that!
John 15:12
My command is this; Love each other as I have loved you!
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